This invention relates to an apparatus for viewing a gemstone with an image or identification number etched into its surface.
It is known to etch a microscopic or nano-inscription on the table of the diamond using any one of a number of known techniques including plasma etching, ion beam, or lasers. The inscription is of such a small size as to be invisible to the naked eye. The inscription is nearly impossible to read even by a skilled jeweler using a common 10× loupe because the proper viewing angle is difficult to achieve. The images engraved, which can include individual characters (i.e., letters and/or numbers) such as an identification number, conventionally have a length of ranging from about 300 to 1200 microns. The inscription is typically etched to a depth of about 10 to 80 nanometers. The difficulty in viewing the inscription is accentuated by the translucent nature of diamonds and other gemstones, which allows light to pass through both the nano-inscroption polished area formed by the engraving process and the surrounding surface of the gemstone, (for example, the polished table facet).
The conventional method of viewing the inscription employed a high (65×, for example) magnification lens and camera with an electronic display screen to view the microscopic inscription. Such systems are expensive, cumbersome and complicated to use, which reduces the value of the inscription because most retailers and consumers do not have access to such equipment, and thus cannot see or make use of the inscription.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,468,786 and 8,035,807, which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety, and invented by the same inventors as the present invention and owned by the same assignee, disclose a less expensive and more effective viewer (referred to hereinafter as an Engraved Gemstone Viewer) using the concept of illuminating the surface of the polished diamond in such a way as to create a spectral light reflection much like that of a mirror. The Engraved Gemstone Viewer is effective but lacks the convenience of being with the person at all times that engraving might be needed to be viewed, and further, lacks a way to memorize the image for later recall, comparison analysis, or remote communication of the information contained in the image.
The present invention is intended to provide solutions to these and other problems and improvements over the structures and methods described above.